Hundreds of teens attend first-of-its-kind music and faith-based concert in Cork City

Bishop Fintan Gavin hailed the success of the Maranatha 2025 event in Cork City Hall which was attended by 500 students from 20 secondary schools

The Bishop of the Diocese of Cork and Ross, Fintan Gavin, hailed the success of the Maranatha 2025 event in City Hall on Thursday. Picture: Brian Lougheed

Hundreds of teenagers have attended the first music and faith-based event of its kind in Cork as the Church finds new ways to engage with young people.

The Bishop of the Diocese of Cork and Ross, Fintan Gavin, hailed the success of the Maranatha 2025 event in City Hall on Thursday, which brought together some 500 young people from 20 secondary schools across the diocese to celebrate their faith and identity through music, while having fun at the same time.

They engaged in a range of activities on the day, including attending a morning workshop that touched on the fundamentals of faith and how they are loved by God, before they performed a concert to a packed City Hall concert hall that evening.

Addressing the students and the audience afterwards, Bishop Gavin thanked everyone who had made the event possible and said Maranatha’s purpose was focused on an important question for all young people.

“The biggest question all of us face in our life is about our identity: who am I?” he said. “In a sense, our whole life is trying to work out who we are.

“If there's anything I want you to hear this evening coming out of Maranatha it is this: you are the beloved daughter and son of God. You are loved by God.” 

He said Maranatha was designed to celebrate their lives and faith journey through music and by reflecting on some of the issues most current in their present experience.

The 500 young people from 20 secondary schools across the diocese performed a concert to a packed City Hall concert hall. Picture: Brian Lougheed

“The whole day was be underpinned by celebrating our identity as baptised Christians, beloved of God,” he said.

“I want to thank the schools for coming on board and supporting the diocese in creating this new and exciting initiative for our young people.” 

The students who took part had spent several weeks preparing by engaging in workshops of liturgical and inspirational contemporary music.

Sheila Kelleher, the diocesan co-ordinator for Youth Ministry, said the Diocese of Cork and Ross has always had a strong musical tradition.

“Maranatha is a way for us to harness that energy and come together to engage our young people with their faith in a meaningful and joyful way,” she said. It now looks set to become an annual event.